"If I pull off such a gorgeous comeback, Hoshino-nee will definitely fall for me all over again~"
Putting away her Duel Disk, Akasha proudly flicked back her golden hair.
"What's with the 'all over again'? When has Hoshino ever fallen for you in the first place?"
With the duel over, Raviel—who had reverted from Sacred Beast Form: Raviel back into her spirit girl form—mercilessly shot back.
"She did, though! Back in the game, when I flashed in front of Hoshino-nee and blocked the boss attack for her, she totally said she fell for me!"
"I can already picture it," Uria nodded sympathetically. "That's Hoshino's master-level people-charming technique at work."
"What 'people-charming technique'? It's not that complicated. He's just a simp who simped so hard he ended up with nothing," Raviel said pitifully.
"W-Why are you all still in the mood to joke around right now?" Unlike the other two Sacred Beasts, Hamon—also back in her girl form—looked visibly nervous. "The volcano! The volcano on Sealed Island just erupted!"
To the Three Sacred Beasts, Duel Academy Island—the place where their cards had once been sealed—was habitually referred to as "Sealed Island."
"It should be fine~" Akasha confidently winked. "I already defeated the Flame King. Hoshino-nee once told me that as long as you win the duel, any problem can be solved!"
After all, the fundamental rule of this world was, in a sense, that everything could be resolved through duels. Whenever there was a problem, all you had to do was play cards—simple and brutal.
Of course, unexpected situations could still happen sometimes. Like back when Dartz lost his duel, only to drag everyone ten thousand years into the past of Atlantis and settle things with actual swords and blades.
Even so, in the end, he still couldn't escape the rule that losing a duel meant destruction.
And because Akasha had Xyz Summoned Dark Hope and used its effect to make the Flame King lose to its own power, the effect of eradicating the World Tree's corruption was, in a sense, far greater than during the previous King Battles.
At the very least, the flames raging throughout the academy had already been extinguished, though the destroyed school buildings were probably beyond repair.
Crack—!
Before anyone could fully recover, the sound of something like glass shattering rang out overhead.
The sky itself seemed to split open, and from within emerged the black figure of the Roaring King, staff in hand, slowly descending to the place where the Flame King had vanished.
"So in the end, you still failed, Naglfar."
It was impossible to tell whether his tone carried anger or sorrow. Standing atop the scorched ground left behind by the Flame King, Harr spoke as though merely stating a fact he had long foreseen.
"So this guy is another one of the Nine Kings?"
At this point, no one even knew what expression they should make anymore. The situation had already been terrible enough, and now the appearance of King Harr only made things worse.
"At least compared to the Flame King earlier, this one looks a bit more human," Syrus comforted himself.
"One after another, they just keep showing up. What is this, some bargain sale at a supermarket?!" Akasha twitched at the corner of her eye and waved her hand. "I surrender already. If you make me duel again, I seriously can't keep going."
With the destruction of the Flame King, the untouchably scorching flame duel field also disappeared, finally allowing Jaden and the others to approach Akasha.
"Don't worry, Akasha. You dueled brilliantly!" Jaden encouraged. "Even if there's another duel next, Minazuki and I will handle it. After all, none of us are fighting alone."
"The hell?! It's one thing for you to flirt with girls yourself, but why drag me into this too?!" Minazuki retorted. "If it were a beautiful opponent like the Light King, fine. But this pitch-black King Battle-looking guy? No thanks."
Jaden patted Minazuki on the shoulder and laughed brightly.
"What are you talking about, Minazuki? We're friends who've faced life and death together in class!"
Alexis immediately shot back, "First of all, the fact that you need to 'face life and death' during class is already weird enough, okay?"
Jaden added, "Besides, if we're talking about being black, your ace is obviously way darker-looking than this King."
"Not fighting alone, huh…"
Watching Jaden still able to smile even in the face of danger, Akasha suddenly recalled the dream she had seen the previous night.
A strange premonition rose within her.
Perhaps that lonely-faced Jaden who had fallen into darkness would never appear again.
"Besides, dreams were fake from the very beginning. The fact that I was even worried about something like that was pretty stupid."
"What's wrong, Akasha?" Raviel leaned in with a meaningful smile. "Did you suddenly start wanting to protect that smile, young lady~?"
"You people!" Syrus interrupted their increasingly off-topic conversation. "This isn't the time to chat! Read the room! Another King just showed up!"
Yet despite Syrus's tension, Harr didn't even spare them a glance. He merely bent down and picked up a shattered fragment of the Proof of the King left behind by Naglfar.
"Though we spent a thousand years together, Naglfar, you were always nothing more than a brainless brute. Even so, amidst the thousand years I spent scheming and plotting, having a friend like you was not without its joys."
Pouring magic into the fragment of the Proof of the King, he awakened the calamitous flames deep within the earth's crust.
"At the very least, use the Flame King's power you left behind to cleanse this troublesome island for me. This shall become the most critical move upon the board of victory and defeat!"
The volcano erupted once more.
This time, the flames were even more violent than before. Gray ash thrown skyward by the eruption polluted the heavens, while boiling lava poured down the mountainside like a monstrous flood determined to devour all life.
"He made the volcano erupt again?!" Akasha cried in disbelief. "Damn it… so appearing at this exact moment was his plan all along?!"
"Hmph. If I were still at my peak, maybe I could've done something about this." Uria, now back in the form of a red-haired little girl, stared grimly at the apocalyptic inferno before them. "But a disaster-scale eruption like this? I can't stop it now."
"Either way, if the magma keeps spreading down the mountain like this, even the academy won't be safe!" Bastion advised. "We should prioritize evacuation and retreat toward the harbor."
"Let's go first, Akasha!" Jaden said worriedly as he grabbed her wrist.
"Wait. If we just leave like this…" Akasha suddenly realized something, panic appearing on her face. "I remember there's still a hot spring inn at the foot of that volcano, right?"
The luxurious hot spring inn where Akasha, Hoshino, Alexis, and Jaden had once stayed together for free at Kaiba's invitation was located near the foot of the mountain, close to the halfway point up the slope.
"With the fire spreading like this, even if we can still escape now, the people there definitely won't make it in time!"
"So what are you planning to do, Akasha-senpai?" Blair asked. At a time like this, she no longer even cared that Jaden was holding Akasha's wrist. "Even you can't save everyone. Some things can't be protected just because you want to protect them. Even an elementary schooler like me understands that."
"No… if Hoshino-nee were here—if Hoshino-nee were here, she absolutely wouldn't let anyone get hurt!"
Akasha, overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness, realized that even though she had won the duel, she still hadn't achieved the best possible ending. If the entire Duel Academy Island were destroyed, then the life they once had would vanish like shattered bubbles.
"Why am I so weak… If only I could be as strong as Hoshino-nee…"
"Calm down a little, Akasha." Seeing the powerless expression on her face, Alexis gently held her ice-cold hands and comforted her softly.
"Senpai isn't a god either. She's incredibly reliable, but this kind of disaster is already beyond what humans can stop. You've already done amazingly well just by fighting this far."
"No, that's not true!" Akasha violently shook her head, firmly denying it. "Even in a situation like this, Hoshino-nee would still be able to stop it. Duel King Hoshino Chiyuki is the god in my heart!"
"Akasha, hearing you say that about me is honestly kind of embarrassing."
"That voice—?"
Turning around in surprise, tears nearly bursting from her eyes, the first thing Akasha saw was Hoshino shining brilliantly behind her.
More precisely, it was the blue light emitted from the Duel Links AR Duel Disk—stripped from Kaiba—glowing from her left arm and right eye.
"Well done, everyone!" Hoshino praised them.
"Even while I was gone, none of you gave up fighting. You even managed to defeat two of the Nine Kings. At a time like this, as your teacher, I should probably scold you all for risking your lives in such dangerous duels… but honestly, I can't bring myself to say it."
"Headmistress?!"
"But when I'm looking at students I'm so proud of, I can't even say a single word of criticism! So leave the rest to me!"
Looking toward the lava that had already spread halfway down the mountain, Hoshino adjusted the output of her Duel Disk link to maximum with the fingertips of her right hand. At the same time, the AR Duel Disk on her left arm displayed all the cards stored within it as glowing blue virtual cards.
"After not using something this complicated for so many years, the fact that I still remember how to operate it really just proves how amazing I am."
Since her specially customized Duel Disk had accidentally been dismantled by the effect of the World Legacy – "World Lance," and ordinary Duel Disks lacked sufficient output, Hoshino had no choice but to use the AR Duel Disk Kaiba always carried with him.
Though its operation was more complicated, the advantage of Duel Links AR was that as long as the user's willpower was strong enough, there was no limit to the level of manifestation its Solid Vision effects could achieve.
In other words, for the current situation, Duel Links AR was actually the optimal solution for Hoshino.
"If I'm going to freeze an entire mountain, my mana alone probably won't be enough. I'm counting on you two, Yugi, Eve!"
"Whether it's magic power or the power of darkness, use as much as you want, Hoshino."
The golden radiance of the Millennium Puzzle hanging on his chest burst forth brilliantly as the King manifested a magical space around them, similar to a Dark Game barrier.
"Th-That is…!"
The moment everyone saw the King standing beside Hoshino, the entire group fell into shock.
"The legendary duelist—the one who fought Headmistress to a draw in the KC Tournament finals—Yugi!"
"It's been a long time, Mr. Yugi!" Jaden exclaimed excitedly.
"The world's two strongest duelists are standing right in front of me… I'm not dreaming, am I?"
Unable to believe the sight before him, Minazuki forcefully pinched Sho Marufuji's thigh and sighed emotionally.
"It hurts… so this really isn't a dream!"
"Why does pinching my thigh make you hurt…" Syrus originally intended to complain, but after seeing Alexis pinching Minazuki's thigh too, he could only sigh helplessly. "You people seriously still have the energy for this kind of layered nonsense right now?"
"Eve's here to help too!" With her hands clasped together, Eve, the Priestess, unleashed her magical power and linked herself to the virtual cards before Hoshino.
"And who's this supposed to be?" Blair tilted her head in confusion after looking at Eve. "She feels about the same age as me. Like an elementary school kid."
"She's probably some nameless background nobody," Akasha guessed.
"T-The favoritism is so obvious! I never imagined my popularity would be so much lower than that starfish-head's!"
At what point did this useless shrine maiden start believing she had popularity in this world?
["Aibo, there's not much time left. This is our only chance, so we have to go all out!"]
"I know!"
From the many virtual cards displayed before her, Hoshino selected the one capable of freezing the entire world and activated her Heroic Spirit Summon.
"Summon—Eternal Frozen Flame Age! Freeze the lava before us! Scáthach-Skadi!"
In stark contrast to the hellishly boiling lava before them, the final god of the Norse Lostbelt, Skadi, materialized atop dazzling ice pillars reflecting the sunlight.
"What an irritating amount of heat. Summoning me into an environment like this won't solve anything without at least three ice creams. Though this mana feels familiar…"
Slightly furrowing her brows, Skadi seemed to sense something familiar within the lingering power left behind by the Flame King.
"The Flame Giant King, Surtr? No… not the same, yet very similar. A flame worthy of being called a calamity, perhaps. It reminds me of some rather unpleasant memories."
Freezing magical power spread outward.
Even Surtr's flames themselves could be frozen by Skadi, and in the blink of an eye, she sealed the entire active volcano—along with the lava flowing down the mountainside—within absolute zero.
"Ugh… f-feels like my body's been completely drained…"
Hoshino hadn't expected summoning Skadi to consume so much mana. Her knees nearly buckled beneath her.
"Endure it a little longer. Otherwise, this entire island will disappear."
With a wave of her staff, Skadi completely transformed the fiery landscape before them into one of ice. The volcano that once inspired fear as a disaster waiting to erupt at any moment had now become a dreamlike scene—a magnificent frozen mountain glittering beautifully beneath the sunlight.
Thud—!
A small body collapsed straight onto the ground.
Having completely exhausted all the magical power in her body, Eve fainted on the spot without even saying a word.